For Love Alone

Episode Three

Achilles

I watched the color drain from my friend's face at the mention of the one woman who'd had the power to destroy us all in one fell swoop. I knew exactly what he was feeling in that moment. Memories held locked away behind tightly closed doors and forgotten are suddenly made real again, leaving emotions raw and painful in their wake.

"What about her?" I turned to look at Rafe, who'd been silent and watching since he'd arrived at the Castle. Fame and notoriety had done little to change my childhood friend, still dressed in black and quiet as the grave until he was pissed off. Then get the hell out of the way. We all had dark pasts, but Rafe's was the darkest by far. The only person to bring him out of his self-imposed isolation was Layne. Nausea rolled through my stomach at the thought of what I was about to reveal to the men who'd been like brothers to me. Would they hate me after this? Not as much as I'd hate myself.

Sighing, I walked to the nearby table where a decanter of aged Scotch awaited with crystal tumblers. I heard a few breaths catch in the room, but other than that, silence. They all knew about the battle I'd waged with alcohol years ago. I'd survived it, just barely. I slowly poured the amber liquor in a class and, instead of raising it to my lips, I carried the drink over to Cohen and returned to my place at the window. The look of gratitude in his eyes was thanks enough.

"You going to answer or what? It's not like I don't have s**t to do. Do you know I am missing out on some important meeting for this little gathering?" I gave Miller a humorless smirk. Out of all of us, Miller had probably changed the least since Lowell Academy. All business, all the time. Layne had been the only one to bring the human out in the guy. The man was a genius but human feelings were a challenge for him. Taking a deep breath, I began.

"Do you all remember Tessa Warren?" Cohen smiled sardonically before taking a slow draw from his glass, his blue eyes cold as a winter morning.

"She was more your thing, wasn't she? Weren't you two an item after Lay..." Cohen seemed to run out of syllables when Layne's name was on his tongue. He covered the trip of his tongue with another deep swallow of liqueur.

I nodded, a familiar sick feeling settling in my stomach. A boiling hot tub of water and all the Borax in the world wouldn't make me feel clean again after my brief entanglement with Tessa Warren. After Layne's so-called betrayal, I completely jumped off the deep end and fell into a s****l relationship with Tessa. I'd regretted it the moment I touched her but feelings of rage and betrayal kept me in that viper's bed for months.

"Two days ago, I got a call from Niles Warren, her older brother. Apparently, Tess never stopped partying when she graduated from Lowell Academy. She accidentally overdosed a month ago while on a shopping trip to Dubai." As I expected, not an ounce of sympathy was shown on the faces of any man in the room, including myself. Tess had been a malignant personality that had only been amplified by her intense drug use. At Lowell, everyone had dabbled a bit, but Tessa had always taken it a step further than even the hardest partyer.

Cohen's eyes narrowed, his gaze fixed on the glass in his hand as if the answer to his unspoken question lay within the amber liquid. "And why exactly are we just hearing about this now?" His voice was steady, but the tension in the room thickened. Miller, ever the pragmatist, spoke up. "Niles Warren is a powerful man. He likely wanted to keep this quiet, especially given Tessa's history." I nodded, knowing Miller was right. The Warren family would go to great lengths to protect their reputation. "But what does this have to do with Layne?" Rafe's deep voice rumbled, his eyes narrowing. I took a breath, steeling myself for the revelation.

"Niles mentioned that Tessa had kept a diary. In it, she detailed her relationships and encounters, and apparently, Layne features prominently." A collective curse filled the room, each of us knowing the potential fallout from such a revelation. Layne had been our Achilles' heel, the one woman who had the power to bring us to our knees. "What does the diary say?" Cohen asked, his voice tight. I shook my head. "I don't know the specifics. Niles wants to meet and discuss it. He's aware of our history with Layne and

wants to handle this discreetly." A heavy silence descended as each of us considered the implications. We had all moved on, and built lives for ourselves, but the past had a way of rearing its ugly head when we least expected it

.

"When are you meeting with him?" Miller asked, the dismissive tone in his voice poorly hiding his own curiosity. I glanced down at my matte black Mavado watch.

"He should be arriving any minute."

As if my words were prophetic, a sharp knock sounded from the library door.

"Come in," I called out, taking a seat in a high-backed chair. I tried to appear relaxed but tension buzzed down my limbs. I had more to tell my friends, but I wanted to get this meeting with Niles out of the way. I suspected much of what he was going to tell us but it was better my boys heard some of this from Niles.

Stanley opened the door and moved smoothly to the side; his stiff tone rumbled into the room.

"Mr. Niles Warren, to see you, Sir." I gave a slight nod of acceptance and watched as Niles

Warren stepped into the library, his presence filling the room. He was a tall, imposing figure, and his dark suit and serious expression gave him an air of authority. I recognized the weight of his family name and the power that came with it. His eyes, a steely gray, scanned the room, taking in each of us with a calculated gaze. I felt a shift in the atmosphere as the tension cranked up a notch. "Gentlemen," he began, his voice deep and commanding.

"Thank you for agreeing to meet with me. I'll get straight to the point. My sister, Tessa, as you know, led a rather... colorful life. Her diary reveals a web of secrets and scandals, and it seems Layne played a significant role in one of her more...outrageous stunts." Niles paused, his eyes settling on me. "It appears Layne may have been a victim in this particular incident." He trailed off, leaving the sentence hanging. A collective intake of breath filled the room. I saw Cohen's hands clench into fists, his eyes narrowing. Rafe

shifted in his seat, his face a mask of controlled anger. Miller, always the most composed, remained still, but his eyes held a dangerous glint.

"What the f**k are you talking about, Niles?" Good ole Cohen didn't mince words. I leveled my gaze on Niles, silently waiting for the blade to fall. Niles pulled some items from his suite pocket. What looked to be a flash drive and a small notebook. He placed the items on the table, a genuine look of remorse showing on his face.

"I can't imagine why Tess hated this Layne girl so much but if my sister truly did everything she said in that diary..." Niles grimaced, casting a speaking look my way.

"My sister was as flawed as they come but this...this was pretty low for even her. All I ask is that you all keep whatever revelations you find to yourselves. I wasn't very present in Tessa's life, and well...I should have been. Maybe if I hadn't left her to her own devices, she would have been a better person. Our parents' divorce didn't have the best effect on her." Niles shook his head and cast one last look around the room. The grief on his face was genuine, and I tried to be sympathetic. Unfortunately, my heart was a lump of ice in my chest and I have a hard time feeling anything these days. Niles turned to leave, but just before he stepped through the doorway, he turned to meet my gaze.

"This Layne girl didn't deserve whatever happened to her. If you seek her out, please offer her my family's deepest apology." With that, Niles left, clearly completely unaware of the devastation he'd left in his wake.

Cohen's eyes flicked to me, his expression a mix of anger and confusion. I knew he was thinking the same as me: what the hell did Tessa Warren have to do with Layne? The very mention of Layne's name brought a rush of memories, both sweet and bitter. I saw the same conflict play out on the faces of my friends. We had all loved and lost Layne, and the wounds were still raw, even after all these years. I cleared my throat, the sound cutting through the heavy silence.

"Niles mentioned Layne may have been a victim. What did he mean by that?" I asked, my voice steady despite the turmoil within me. Cohen's gaze was sharp, his eyes narrowing as he processed my words. "What aren't you telling us, Achilles?" The weight of their stares was heavy, but I kept my expression neutral, a skill honed over years of hiding my true feelings.

Scrubbing my hands down my face, my head falling back against the chair. Now the truth comes out.

"As you all know, my grandfather, Magnus, died a few months back." I didn't miss the looks of disdain on my

friend's faces at the mention of Magnus Montague. They had all been front and center to the type of cruelty I suffered under the old man. When my parents died shortly after my tenth birthday, Magnus became my guardian. My parents had not been saints, but in comparison to the man who had raised me, they'd been downright cool.

Technically, they hadn't done any real parenting, so to speak, so I'd been cared for by a series of nannies and housekeepers for the most part. Stanley was the only true, consistent figure in my childhood besides the guys.

"I was looking through his safe and found a ledger. There was an entry of fifty thousand dollars that was paid out to Tessa Warren." I let the statement sit in the air for a moment. I watched the truth dawn on each man's face. I watched the confusion of Cohen's face begin to change to complete horror. He'd been here the night Magnus had confronted me about Layne and our unorthodox relationship with her.

Cohen's eyes widened, his breath catching in his throat. He remembered that night vividly, the night everything changed.

Memories assailed me, and I gritted my teeth against the flood. It had been winter break from Lowell, and I'd thought it would be a good idea to bring Layne home with me.

Cohen had come along because he had no one at home. His parents had taken off to spend Christmas in Colorado. I'd stupidly thought the more, the merrier, but the fool that I was, forgot what happened when any of us got in the same room with Layne. Touching her became imperative, and obsession would take over, ruling our senses until we were satisfied. Unfortunately, my grandfather had walked in on one of those satisfaction-seeking moments, and all hell broke loose.